Helen Mirren is a beauty who has been admired since she first started acting, in her teens. From the early days at the Royal Shakespeare Company to the West End and countless movies like Excalibur and Gosford Park, even as the grim Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect, and more recently as the Queen on stage and screen - she always carried herself glamorously.
Then she made some commercials and ads for L'Oreal's Age Perfect moisturising cream - and was accused of being retouched. She was unhappy with the call, her employer even more so. They insisted that it is the real Helen there, but skilfully made up by a top make-up artist as you would expect for any photo shoot.
A viewer complained to Britain's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that the actress's wrinkles, specifically around her mouth, had been airbrushed. L'Oreal responded with four red carpet images, demonstrating that Dame Helen's appearance was consistent with the commercial; and said no post-production techniques had been applied.
The advertising watchdog upheld the company's claims: "We considered that the ads had not altered Ms Mirren's appearance in a way that would exaggerate the likely effect that could be achieved by consumers' use of the product, and concluded that the ads were not misleading," they said.
It comes as a nice birthday gift for next week, when she turns 70.
In the ad she strides the streets in a leather bikie jacket and cool blonde bob, even sliding a sly look at a much younger man at the parapet. This girl sure ain't shuffling to Centrelink.
Her attitude is reflected in the consistent growth of the $4 billion Australian cosmetics market, and the rapid emergence of "anti-aging" products like the Age Perfect range.
A recent Roy Morgan survey found 13 per cent of respondents searched out anti-aging properties, and as you would expect, the interest starts with the over 35s. And of course the competition can be harder for women.
Twin sisters Lexie and Lyndsay Kite are both PhDs and they run a Web program called "Beauty Redefined". They talk about "Invisible Women Over 40", the age when women can disappear from view. Those age problems like wrinkles and sags and spots are so important to them, but not to men, it seems. Grey hair that looks "distinguished" in a man is vetoed in women by cosmetics companies, they say, because "Grey hair doesn't make anyone any money".
Hollywood clearly makes this distinction. Digital magazine Vulture.com surveyed ten top stars and their movies. For example, when Liam Neeson was 18, in a movie Darkman, his love interest was Frances McDormand aged 33. At 42 he had Jessica Lang and Meryl Streep, both 46 (in Rob Roy and Before and After). Then just this year - he's 63 - his lover is Olivia Wilde, aged 29, in Third Person.
Virtually the same graph is repeated for the other stars: Denzel Washington, Harrison Ford, Johnny Depp, George Clooney, Richard Gere, Steve Carell, and Brad Pitt. Most are 10 to 20 years older than the girl. Tom Cruise had three early years as the young ingenue to be seduced by an older woman but by the time he met Nicole the Hollywood balance was reasserted. In Far and Away he was 29, she was 24.
So let's be grateful that there is a stable of strong female stars and entertainers who still command audiences though they are over 40. Salute Meryl, Nicole, Gwyneth, Julia, Cameron, Madonna, Kylie, Cate, Toni. And of course, "Happy Birthday Helen".
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